Translation(s): English - Français - Italiano


Atheros 802.11a/bg PCI/PCI-E devices (ath5k)

This page describes how to enable support for WiFi devices based on Atheros 802.11a/bg PCI/PCI-E chipsets, using the ath5k driver on Debian systems.

ath5k is a driver supporting Atheros 802.11a/bg PCI/PCI-E chipsets, included in the mainline Linux kernel since version 2.6.25.

Unlike the MadWifi driver, ath5k does not require a binary HAL (hardware abstraction layer). No firmware is required to be loaded from userspace. Supported devices are listed at the end of this page.

{i} Atheros 802.11a/bg USB devices are supported by the zd1211rw and ar5523 drivers.

{i} Atheros 802.11n PCI/PCI-E devices are supported by the ath9k driver.

Installation

The ath5k driver is present in Debian Linux kernel images since version 2.6.24.

Switching from MadWifi to ath5k

This section can be skipped if MadWifi was not previously used.

Configuration

  1. Install the wireless-tools package:

    aptitude install wireless-tools
  2. If not already performed, physically connect the device to your system.
  3. The ath5k kernel module is automatically loaded for supported devices. Verify your device has an available interface:

    # iwconfig
  4. Configure your wireless interface as appropriate.

Supported Devices

The page HowToIdentifyADevice/PCI explains how to identify a PCI device.

The following list is based on the alias fields of modinfo ath5k in Debian 2.6.32 (2.6.32-46) kernel images.

Unsupported

Devices with an Atheros AR5005VL (AR5513) chipset (PCI ID 168c:0020):

Use of NDISwrapper may be possible for device support.

See Also


CategoryHardware | CategoryWireless